Manufacture of footwear



Julys, 1945. R H, FSLE'R 2,379,480

MANUFACTURE OF FOOTWEAR Filed May 1'4, 1943 Inyewaz' 120567@ maar Patented July 3, 1945 was MANUFACTURE or FOOTWEAR Robert Hl Fesler, Manhasset, N. Y. Application May 14, 1943, steriel NQ. 487,003

' (o1. sei-22) v 11 claims.

' This invention pertains to the manufacture of footwear'and relates more particularly to a novel insole for Goodyear welt-type shoes and Itov a novel method of making such insoles. y

" The customary Goodyear welt insole isof substantial thickness and too stiff to permit its margin as a whole to be bent out of the plane of its central portion to receive attaching stitches (as is customary in making shoes of the force-lasted Vtype whereinthe insole or sock lining is a thin `flexible piece of textile fabric) and thus the Good` year welt insole is provided with a marginal sew ing'rib at its underside designed to receive the inseam stitches which unite the welt and upper to the insole. This sewing rib, whether reinforced or not, usually comprises two thin rflaps integral with the body of the insole and which are turned up and cemented together thus providing two thicknesses of the insole material to The inner onev of receive the sewing stitches. these flaps results from a channeling operation, while the other flap is produced by making an lincision in the edge of the sole, in a plane parallel vto the bottom of the sole, and turning down the material intervening between the incision and the under surface of the sole to form the second flap. Usually this incision is located nearer to the under or flesh surface of the insole than to the upper'or grain surface. The relatively thick and stiff marginal portion of the sole at its grain side projects outwardly beyond the turned-down nap and is called the ffeather. Since the outer edge of this feather is spaced (by the'width of the down-turned flap) from the'o'uter surface of the sewing rib, the upper'must make a sharp, nearly' rightangular bend inpassingk from its attachment to the rib upwardly about the "edge of the insole. As a result the' feather is stressed and tendsto bend upwardlyldurin'g use, thus allowing the upper to become slack and impairing `the t ofthe shoe. Moreover, such an upward bending of the margin or feather of the insole makes the sur-face on which the foot rests uneven', the border of this supporting Surface being higher than its central portion-and as thisupturned border is usually uneven and sometimes undulatingV or wrinkled real discomfort may thus be occasioned. At best,-the material of the insole which is customarily incorporated in the sewing rib is weak and easily torn, being thin and comprising the fiesh side ofthe leather,v and in the cheaper grades and in the' thinner insoles the sewing rib, unless reinforced with canvas or the like, is whollyv inadequate as an anchorage for thesewing stitches.

Inaccordance with the present invention the above ldicultiesl are overcomefinfavery simple andi effective way and without undue increase in cost-thel improved insole (which in Iothergparticulars is a typical Goodyear welt insole of substantial thickness and inherent stiffness) having a sewing rib which comprises three ,thicknesses of the material of the insole, one ofthem being from the grain side or the sole, the feather, as y si1 h being ventirely eliminated,`so that the upperiexftends upwardly from its anchorage` to ,the Iribwith `but little changin direction.` Moreover, the edge Vfof the sole which 'the' upperengages-f is smoothly *rounded and firm so'th'at isldoes not bend upwardly toany substantial 'extent during use, thus insuring a 'smooth'and evensurface as a support for the yfoota'nd maintaining theupper in its lasted shape withoutfsubstantial yielding or the` formation of slack inthe upper during use.

`In accomplishing this desired result the insoleis thickness,` leaving` at the grain'side a feather of substantialy flexibility. This Areduction in thick-T ness of the feather lmay eXtendall'ofthaway around the sole from the heel portion l'at one side to the heel portion at the other side, although under most circumstances it is sufficient and in some cases preferably to leave the feather'of normal thickness in the yshank portions of the insole and reduce it only at'the ,forepart and toe. After the feather Lhasthus been reduced, the `ren maining, grain portiongof the feather isy turned down and cementedv to the previously `formed rib, thus providing three thicknesses of leatherjin the rib and affording very substantial additional strength vto `resist tearing out of the sewing stitches. f

Further objects and advantages of the invention Awill "be pointed out in the following more detailedA description and by reference to theaccompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. -1 is a perspective view showingthe underside o'f an insole prepared'in accordance with usual methods'and in readiness `for the perform-y novelstep involved in the presin theproduction of the insole;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but illustrating the step of reducing the thickness of the feather;

Fig. 2a is a fragmentary section illustrating the operation of thinning the feather in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2b is a fragmentary elevation showing the cutters used in thinning the feather;

Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig. 1 but showing the insole as completed in accordance with the presentinventon;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section illustrating the step of turning down the flap resulting from thinning the feather;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section on a line 4--4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section on theline 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary section showing. the completed insole with the upper and welt assembled and stitched to the sewing rib; and

Fig. .7 is a fragmentary view similar to Fig. 1a .illustrating a modifledvprocedure.

ReferringV tothe .drawing the numeral l designates the body portion of an .insole yor insole blank, which for. convenience in description but without limitation, maybe considered as aninsole or `blank of leather (of customary `stiifness and thicknesssuch asis .usual inGoodyear-weltshoes) havingthegrain or upper surface 2 .andtheflesh or lower surface 3.. When .the 4terms grain and flesh are hereinafter employed it is to .be understood kthatthey are to .be construed broadly Ias referring tothe upperV and-undersurfaces respectively of the insolewhateverits material, whether leather,`V or any',` combinationof leather with other materials, or. substitutes for leather.

Following the customary procedure in `making awelt insole, the-blank yl is provided 1with an incision v4. (Fig. la) `extending inwardly from its outer edge5 and .with achanneling incision Yi in its ileShsuraCe, said incisions .defining the .outer flap -1 and inner iiap 8 whichare.integrallyjoined to the body of theinsole andywhich bothconsist of porticnsof the .flesh iside of the insole, such flaps hereinafter being referred toas flesh flaps. The incision .34 also `defines the feather lswhich is the `marginal'portion of the grain side of the original blank. .customarily the incision 4 is of such depth that the Width o f the feather 9 is substantially greater than the thickness of' the b ody of the blank.

Followingcustomary procedure, the flesh flaps 'l and 8 are bent downwardly about their junctions with the body ofthe insole Vsothat their flesh surfaces substantially contact and the flaps are united by suitable adhesive; Customarily, a reinforcement l0' (Figs. v3, 4 andY 5) of canvas or the like is applied to the flesh surface'of the insole and a portion of this reinforcement is extended up into contact with. tl'ieimierl ynap 8 Aand cemented to the latter, the flaps' 1 :and 8 with the reinforcement commonly constituting the sewing rib to which the upper and welt are united by the inseam stitches. While this -ri'b :isreferred to as a sewing-i rib, it is tube-'understood that` other means than stitches maybe used'for attaching the upper and welt,`for lexample staples. Customarily, this rib R (Fig: fi) xextends from apoint l I (Fig. 1i in --the planeof the heel breast around the shank,- forepart, and. toe ,ofthe insole andto a `point |-2 at the `opposite side-ofthe sole, kalso substantially at the plane of the heel breast.

The description thus. far applies to the preparation of ay stiff shape retaining ribbed insole substantially in accordancewith customary prior practice and the insole with its rib thus formed is hereinafter referred to as an embryo insole since it forms a stage product in the preparation of the improved insole of the present invention.

In accordance with this invention, this embryo insole as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 4, is now subjected to an operation or operations whereby the thickness of the feather 9 is substantially reduced so as to make it very flexible. In accordance with the `preferred procedure, this .operation is performed by the use of the Economy Channeling Machine supplied by the United Shoe Machinery Corporation but somewhat modified by the employment of cutters of novel character. Thus, as illustrated in Fig. 2, there is shown a portion P of the presser foot carrier of such a machine upon which are mounted the two cutters I4 'and l 5 (Figs. 2, 2a and 2b.) The operation of thinning the feather is preferably commenced at a, point adjacent to the forward end of the shank of the insole at one side and extends progressively around -the margin of the insoleito a corresponding point at the opposite side of the insole. vDuring this progressive skiving operation, the cutters vi4 and I5 skive a shaving I6 (Fig. 2) from the flesh or underside of the feather 9, thus reducing the thickness of the 4feather so that it becomes merely a thin flexible flap Se, as shown-in Fig. 5. Having thinned the feather in this Way and converted vit into a flexible iiap which forms va continuation of the grain or upperside ofthe insole and which possesses the high tensile strength of the grain surface Yof the sole, this flap is then turned downwardly as illustrated in Fig. 3a, forming a smooth bend at l1, the flap 9a `extending across-the thicknessof the insole proper and having its free margin disposed against the outer surface vof the rib flap 1. This flap 9a `isnow cemented or otherwise-firmly secured to the ap 1 so 4that the flap 9a becomes a constituent'part of the complete sewingrib.

The sewing rib isthus substantially stronger than the usual rib since, as above noted, the flap Beconsists of the strongest and most durable-portion of the leather, that is to say the grain .portion, and thus substantial strength and more secure anchorage for the sewing stitches is provided. I

In thus converting the feather into -a exible flap and making said ap'a-part of the sewing rib the feather, as such, is eliminated, the foot-sup.- porting `surface of the inner sole terminating substantially at the point I1 (Fig. 3e). When the upperl U and the welt W (Fig. 6) are sewed'; to

f the rib by means of inseam stitches S, the upper isno longer required to make a sharp Sbend in passing about the edge of the insole, but as illustrated in. Fig. 6, extends-upwardly in a smooth curve with butslig-ht'change in direction from its point of attachment to the sewing rib past the edge of the insole. Thus during the Wear of the shoe there is no feather to be bent upwardly by the stress imposed by the upper, and'the'footsupporting surface of the insole remains smooth and level and theupper does notbecome slackened by reason of the-upward turning of a feather asis common in welt shoes made by usual meth ods.

While the above-described method of-providing the third flap Sia forming an velement ofthe rib is preferred, it is contemplated that-similar results might be obtained in other ways, for instance as illustrated in Fig. '7, by simultaneously forming the channel 6 in the-insole blank and a slot i8 extending inwardly from the edge 5 of theiblank,

thus at one and the same time providing the esh flaps 1X and 8x and the grain flap 8X, the slot I8 being of such width that the flaps 'lX and 9x do not exceed in thickness one-third the thickness of the body of the sole, it being understood that after these flaps have thus been formed they may be turned down and united to form the sewing rib substantially as above described.

While certain desirable embodiments of the invention have been illustrated by way of example, it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily limited to these precise embodiments but is to be regarded as broadly inclusive of any and all modifications and equivalents falling within the terms of the appended claims.

I claim: l

1. A Goodyear we1t-type insole of a customary thickness and stiffness such that its entire margin can not readily be bent to constitute a sewing rib, said insole having a marginal sewing rib com- 2. A Goodyear welt-type insole of a customary l thickness and stiness such that its entire margin can not readily be bent to constitute a sewing rib, said insole having a sewing rib at its underside, said rib comprising three associated aps each integral with the body of the insole, and means uniting the flaps to form the rib, the insole being devoid of any marginal feather.

3. A welt-type insole having a marginal sewing rib comprising two flesh flaps and a grain flap, each integral with the body of the sole, and means uniting said flaps, the insole being devoid of any marginal feather.

4.'A leather insole having a marginal sewing rib comprising three flaps each integral with the body of the insole, two of said flaps being flesh flaps and the third being a grain flap, the several flaps being bent at their junctions with the body 'of the insole and contacting one another and means uniting the several flaps to form a sewing rib, the insole being devoid of any marginal feather.

5. A Goodyear welt-type insole having a vsewing rib formed of upstanding flaps, the insole having an integral flap of a width greater than the thickness of the body of the insole and of a thickness less than one-half that of the body of the insole and forming a smooth continuation of the upper surface of the insole, said flap being bent downwardly and its` free marginal portion constituting an element of the sewing rib.

6. Method of making a welt-type sole which comprises as steps channeling an insole blank in substantially the usual manner to provide a pair of fleshr flaps and a feather, removing material from the flesh side of the feather thereby to decrease the thickness of the latter and reduce it to the form of a flexible grain flap, and turning the several flaps downwardly and unitingthem to form a sewing rib.

7. Method of making a welt-type insole which comprises as steps removing material from the mid-portion ofthe edge of lan insole blank so as to provide two flaps each integral with the body f y creasing the thickness of the feather to make it flexible, and turning the remainder of the feather downwardly into contact with the rib and uniting it t0 the latter thereby increasing the thickness of the rib and eliminating the feather.

9. Method of making a welt-type insole which A comprises as steps providing an embryo insole having a marginal rib and marginal feather, skiving material from the under surface of the feather thereby to decrease its thickness and reduce i't to the form of a flexible flap, turning said yflexible flap downwardly into contact with the rib, and uniting the flap to the rib thereby to increase the thickness of the rib.

10. Method of making a welt-type insole which comprises as steps providing an embryo insole having a marginal rib and marginal feather, decreasingthe thickness of the feather around the forepart and toe portions of the insole thereby to reduce the feather at said portions 0f the insole to a thin flexible flap, and turning said flap downf, wardly andattaching it to the rib.

1l. Method of making a welt-type insole which comprises as steps providing an embryo insole having a marginal rib and marginal feather,

decreasing the thickness of the feather by lskiving the thinned portion of the feather downwardly'and uniting its free margin to the other components of the rib.

ROBERT H. FESLER. 

